Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Biblioasisis an
independent literary press based in Southwest, Ontario. It published about 12
titles per year of poetry, fiction and nonfiction in beautifully crafted
editions. See their submission guidelines here.

This
year, Biblioasis author Anakan Schofield won the Amazon First Novel Award for Malarky.Here’s the media release…

TORONTO,April
24, 2013/CNW/
- This evening, Amazon.ca presented the 2012Amazon.ca First Novel Awardand a cheque for$7,500to Anakana Schofield, author ofMalarky(Biblioasis), at a ceremony
hosted by award-winning broadcaster, writer, musician, producer and
best-selling author, Jian Ghomeshi, at The Four Seasons inToronto.
Schofield was selected to receive the award from a shortlist of five authors,
all of whom had their first novels published in 2012.

Anakana Schofield is an
Irish-Canadian writer of fiction, essays and literary criticism. Her
first novel,Malarky,is the story of an Irish mother
forced to look grief in the eye and of a wife who comes face-to-face with the
mad agony of longing. Anakana Schofield has also contributed to theLondonReview
of Books,TheGlobe and MailandTheVancouverSun. She has lived inLondonand Dublin and now resides inVancouver.

Anakana Schofield lives in Vancouver

Along with Schofield, the 2012
Amazon.ca First Novel Award finalists are Marjorie Celona forY(Hamish
Hamilton, Canada),Scott
FotheringhamforThe Rest Is Silence(Goose
Lane Editions), Pasha Malla forPeople
Park(House
of Anansi Press), and Kim Thúy forRu(Random
House Canada). Each finalist took home a$750gift card to Amazon.ca.

Brian
Henry will lead a "How
to Get Published”workshop on Saturday, May 4, in Barrie, with
guest literary agent Olga Filina of The Rights Factory (see here).

Also,
Brian will host“From the Horse’s Mouth: Getting
published or self-published” at Ryerson University on June
15 with Stacey
Donaghy of the Corvisiero
Literary Agency, Greg Ioannou of Iguana Books, and Patrick Crean
of HarperCollins Canada (details here).

However,
before you submit, though, the best way to get your manuscript into shape is
with a weekly course. This summer, Brian will be leadingIntensive Creative Writingcourses on Tuesday afternoons in
Burlington (details here)
and on Thursday evenings in Mississauga (details here).

If you've ever dreamed of becoming a
published author,this workshop is for you. We’ll cover everything from
getting started to getting an agent, from getting your short pieces published
to finding a book publisher, from writing a query letter to writing what the
publishers want. Bring your questions. Come and get ready to be published!

Workshop leaderBrian Henryhas
been a book editor and creative writing teacher for more than 25 years. He has
helped many of his students get their first book published and launch their
careers as authors.

Guest speakerOlga Filinais an associate
agent atThe Rights Factory.While Olga will read anything that
may set her book clubs on fire, she gravitates towards commercial and
historical fiction, great genre fiction in the area of romance and mystery,
nonfiction in the field of business, wellness, lifestyle and memoir and young
adult and middle grade novels with memorable characters. Besides Olga, The Rights Factory
has six other literary agents, all looking for authors. More on The Rights
Factoryhereandhere.

Special Option:Participants
are invited to bring a draft of a query letter you might use to interest an
agent or publisher in your book. You don’t need to bring anything, but if you
do, 3 copies could be helpful.

Fee: $44 paid in advance by mail or Interac or $48 if you wait to pay at the doorTo reserve your spot, email brianhenry@sympatico.ca

“How to Make Yourself Write”A creativity workoutSaturday, May 11. 201310:00 a.m. - 3:30
p.m.
Appleby United Church, 4407 Spruce Ave,Burlington,Ontario (Map here.)
Let's get motivated! This workshop is designed to help you find
the time and the inspiration to write. No more staring at a blank screen. Come
to this workshop and give yourself a kick-start, and then learn how to keep
going. This creativity workout will get your words flowing and help you make
the breakthrough into the next level of writing.

Fee: $44paid
in advance by mail or Interacor $48if you wait to
pay at the doorTo reserve your spot, emailbrianhenry@sympatico.ca

Quick
Brown Fox welcomes book reviews and
other book related pieces. I also welcome reviews of plays,
movies, restaurants and anything else that catches your fancy.

Reviews may be
straight up or tongue in cheek. You might review restaurants you can’t afford,
based on what you see peering through the window. Or you might review the
patrons of some event, rather than the event itself. Or you might otherwise use
your imagination to get up to some literary mischief.

Please keep reviews
short – under 700 words preferred – and as free of long paragraphs, clumsy prose
and grammatical mistakes as possible.

The
other writers in the class have molded beautiful stories from their items .They
must have a muse that has not found me.

I
pass around the sterling silver necklace with a tiny cauldron and a wee
filament of chain to hold the lid. There are hallmarks and a three leaf clover,
probably agate on the tiny pot...

This
old charm was stashed in the corner of a jewel box. It must have rested there
for years attached to knotted clumps of a fine silver chain secure in the fact
it could not be untied. Tarnished did not begin to describe its blackened
state.

Mom
peered at it and said, “This was Nana’s charm – she brought it from Ireland but
I don’t know anything more about it. I must have put it aside to keep when we
were cleaning out the house.”

“Can I have it?” I asked.

“Yours
for the taking,” Mom replied.

And
so I became the next custodian of the wee cauldron – taking it home and giving
it a bath in silver cleaner.

I
put the polished charm on a choker chain, with the feet pricking my neck and
the cauldron hanging askew, a wearable piece of art to celebrate St. Patrick’s
Day – and then put away for another year.

Or
so I thought….

My
mom, Doris Rebecca Foster, was born in Ireland in the town of Moville in County
Donegal in 1911.

She
was almost two when she left Ireland with her family. They sailed on the
passenger ship Teutonic, arriving in
Portsmouth, Maine, March 24, 1913. And from there on to Weyburn, Saskatchewan.

If
this cauldron could talk what history would it share?

I
wonder, Did Nana wear the wee charm as the ship tossed in the Atlantic?

Did
she hold it for good luck as they travelled west?

Did
she hope there would be pots of gold at the end of rainbows in the new land?

What
frivolous thoughts – I’ll share my research on the pot instead.

The
upright anchor signifies silver and the city mark for Birmingham, England,
where it was made by JC Cook and Son.

The
alphabet letter marks the year the piece was identified by the assay office – 1850.

The
lion verifies the sterling content.

People
who believe in stones say that the moss agate stone in the shamrock helps to
balance emotional energy. The agate enhances concentration, persistence,
endurance and success in one's endeavors. It is an abundance stone, bringing
the wearer health, friends and riches.

Just the qualities needed to complete a
writing assignment

Mom would always tell me, “You are so
lucky.”

I am. Lucky to wear this charm and to have
a story to share.

Nancy
O'Brienhas always loved to tell stories, and has just recently begun to write
them down. As a retired nurse, former therapeutic clown, mother of two,
grandmother of one, she has always been a keen observer to life's
nuances. Her observations and experiences are where she finds the
inspiration for her stories. She has participated in many writing workshops,
and has published works in the poetry anthology, A Woman's Write.

Friday, April 26, 2013

Newprint and online journal Himalayan Walking Shoe (Elgin, Ontario) is accepting poetry
and fiction for our their next issue. Theme: Food & Taxes. Also seeking
original artwork and interviews with Canadian poets and musicians.

The CZP/Rannu
Fund (Canada)
offers two awards per year of $500 each: fiction (7,000 words max.) and poetry
(5 poems, 10 pages max). Granted to two writers of speculative literature
(i.e., science fiction, fantasy, horror, magic realism, surrealism, etc.), of
any nationality or place of residence, at any stage of their career.

The 2013 Canadian Writers' Contest Calendar is available now. Whether you’re a beginner or advanced writer, if you’re looking for places to send your work, you should put contests on your list. The Canadian Writers’ Contest Calendar gives a full listing of contests in Canada arranged by deadline date. It lists contests for short stories, poetry, children’s writing, novels, and non-fiction – contests for just about everyone. The Calendar costs just $20 at one of Brian Henry's workshops or classes or $23.50 by mail (all taxes and shipping included).To order, emailbrianhenry@sympatico

Jody Kleinof Brandt &
Hochman is actively adding to her list of clients right now, so if you’re
looking for an established agent to represent your book, this is a good time to
query Jody.

Jody began her publishing career in
2008 as an assistant to Gail Hochman at Brandt & Hochman, where she now has her own clients and handles first-serial rights for the
agency. Jody is an artist and an athlete, who runs, swims and practices
yoga in her free time. She also loves cooking and getting lost in unique
neighborhoods of New York City.

You can also query Gail Hochman herself - by mail only, and who knows. Scott Turow's not writing much these days, maybe Gail needs some new clients, too.

Brian Henry will lead a "How to Get Published”workshop on Saturday, May 4,
in Barrie, with guest literary agent Olga Filina of The Rights Factory
(see here).

Also, Brian will host “From the Horse’s
Mouth: Getting published or self-published” at Ryerson University on June 15 with Stacey Donaghy of the Corvisiero Literary Agency, Greg Ioannou of Iguana
Books, and Patrick Crean of HarperCollins
Canada(details here).

However, before you submit, though, the best way to get your
manuscript into shape is with a weekly course. This summer, Brian will be
leadingIntensive Creative Writingcourses on Tuesday afternoons in Burlington (details here) and on Thursday evenings in Mississauga (details here).

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Vocamus Pressis a co-operative
organization whose mandate is to build a strong public of readers, writers, and
publishers in Guelph and its surrounding area.

We providewriters at all stageswith opportunities to meet and talk about their work in area
pubs and cafes; to read their work at our public events; and to keep informed
about local workshops, awards, contests, and other development opportunities.

We provide alreadypublished authorswith free Guelph-centric web-presence; sales table space at area
festivals; and publicity for their book launches, readings, and other events.

We provideauthors looking to publish independentlywith co-editing, ISBNs, typesetting, and any other creative or
technical support they need to publish better books.

We provide localpublishers, literary festivals, events, and organizationswith publicity for their events.

Brian Henry has been a book editor, writer, and creative writing instructor for more than 25 years. He teaches creative writing at Ryerson University. He also leads weekly creative writing courses in Burlington, Mississauga, Oakville and Georgetown and conducts Saturday workshops throughout Ontario. His proudest boast is that he has helped many of his students get published.